Dia' De Los Muertos
by QueenBEWD
Summary: Story requested by Usage Moonie! Salem and Kaiba go on a business trip to cancun for a meeting with Carlos Slim, the CEO of Mexico and Latin America's most popular phone service. While their experiencing the sights and sounds of a foreign city, they also experience one of Mexico's most important festivals and see an old friend that's been dying to see them.


Kaiba groaned as the bright Mexican sunlight burned his eyes. He grumbled to himself as he stepped down the stairs of his private jet, closely followed by Salem.

"I already don't like this place." He mumbled as they got into their large black car to head to their hotel.

Salem rolled her eyes,

"You're the one who wanted to do business with Carlos Slim. So, why did you bring me along? Not that I mind, I'm excited to fully immerse myself in this week's festival." She said, scrolling on her phone for tourist experiences.

Kaiba crossed his arms and looked at the moving scenery out the window,

"You make me look like I'm someone capable of working with." He said simply.

Salem looked up from her phone,

"What does that mean?" She said challengingly.

Kaiba sighed,

"When people see that someone like you can stand to be with me, it makes them think that I'm not so bad... " He admitted.

"That's… What do you mean someone like me?" She asked, adjusting her blush pink sundress.

Kaiba turned his gaze toward her and looked her up and down,

"Don't make me say it…"

Salem shook her head, not knowing what Kaiba was getting at.

Kaiba rubbed at his eyes and breathed out through his nose,

"We both know you're too good for me. Ever since our failed attempt to bring Atem back, I've been distant. Yet you stay with me anyway… I don't deserve you.." He explained, his normally stoic face now full of guilt.

Salem sighed and smiled at her boyfriend sadly. She put her hand on his thigh and caressed her thumb across the smooth fabric of Kaiba's suit,

"Tanin… I stay because I need you just as much as you need me. Plus, I like, love you and stuff." She said poking him in the side.

Kaiba chuckled and wrapped his arm around Salem's waist,

"The "L" word. Wow. This trip really is special." He said nuzzling his nose against hers.

He hoped that his physical affection would distract her from the fact that he couldn't say it to her.

He couldn't tell her how much he loved her.

If he did, it would make it real.

If it became real...It would hurt so much more when she would inevitably leave him for someone who would treat her better…

When they arrived at the luxurious penthouse suite, Salem let out a long high pitched yawn.

"Is that really necessary?" Kaiba asked lowly, his head aching from the long flight and the drive.

Salem shrugged and pressed a button on a remote, making the curtains of the large floor to ceiling windows open up to reveal a marvelous view of the white sandy beaches and sparkling ocean water.

"Ooooo…. How much time do we have before the meeting? I'd love to get some sunshine and feel the sand between my toes first." She said excitedly.

"We aren't on vacation. Get dressed for the meeting and we'll see how much time we have after." Kaiba barked, unbuttoning his dress shirt.

Salem huffed and crossed her arms,

"We're here long enough for the Day of the Dead festival and I want to experience it! The meeting is only going to take an hour at most. I'm sure Mr. Slim has other things to do than to meet with a Japanese businessman-"

"This meeting is important, Salem. If we can get Kaiba corp phones in Mexico and Latin America-"

"Blah blah blah, expansion, blah. I know. I'm a CEO too, remember?" She glared up at the tall brunette, not afraid to put her foot down.

"Then act like it." Kaiba spat. He stormed into the bathroom and slammed the door.

Salem rolled her eyes and reluctantly got dressed in a white chanel mini dress and matching white blazer.

She had noticed in the car that Kaiba didn't say that he loved her too.

She had pretended not to notice.

Now, she regretted not saying anything.

She knew she made him look good.

Was that the only reason why he didn't break up with her after she failed to bring back Atem?

Maybe that and her month long hospitalization that was caused by the plan literally backfiring.

She slipped on a pair of white Christian Louboutin pumps with the signature red bottom and sighed heavily.

She sat on the bed and took a picture of Atem out of her Hermes Birkin bag,

"I'm sorry I couldn't help you." She said, slipping the picture back into her purse as Kaiba came out of the bathroom in a different suit.

Kaiba wordlessly gathered his materials in his briefcase and looked at notifications on his phone,

"The car is downstairs. Let's go." He ordered, not waiting for her to stand up before walking out of the bedroom.

He didn't bother to look behind him to see if Salem was there. He didn't need to. He could hear her designer heels clicking loudly on the marble floors.

The car ride was eerily silent as Kaiba scrolled through emails on his phone. He looked up at Salem who was sitting quietly in front of him.

It was strange that she wasn't talking his ear off about the Day of the Dead festival. That was all she could think about since he had asked her to go on this business trip.

He had loved that she was so excited.

"Hey." He said, trying to get her attention.

He smiled at her when she looked into his eyes,

"Are you okay?"

Salem stared at Kaiba, her normally smiling face, stoic,

"Mmhm." She mumbled, turning her attention back to the window.

"Salem. Don't ignore me. You'll need to translate for the meeting." He said seriously.

Salem rolled her eyes,

"Why don't you know Spanish? It one of the world's most spoken languages. Is that the reason why you wanted me here? Besides the fact that I make you look like you aren't a bad person?" She asked, glaring at her unaffectionate boyfriend.

Kaiba glared back at Salem,

"Why are you so snippy all of a sudden?"

Salem gasped and growled,

"Snippy? You were so mean to me earlier! And you never said you loved me back. Why am even here if you don't love me?"

"You're the one who stayed. Don't blame me because you're too insecure to leave." He spat back.

Salem's eyes widened,

"Do you really think that about me? Is that why you haven't touched me in months?" Her voice cracked and shook, tears brimming in the corners of her eyes.

"Crocodile tears won't help you get out of this meeting." Kaiba said, mistaking her sadness for a reason to renege on her promise to help him.

Salem shook her head slowly and wiped her tears. She took out a small compact mirror to check her makeup. She sniffled and cleared her throat, trying to get herself together as they pulled up to the large Telmex skyscraper.

"Are you ready to be an adult?" Kaiba asked harshly, getting out of the car.

Salem remained silent and followed him into the building, groaning internally when they reached the large office of Carlos Slim.

"Ah, Mr. Kaiba, welcome to Mexico." The older CEO said in Spanish, shaking Kaiba's hand firmly.

Salem translated and Kaiba put on his most charming smile, answering the magnate in English,

"Thank you, Mr. Slim. This my partner, Ambassador Sala Wahab."

Carlos looked Salem up and down and chuckled,

"How did you end up with this stiff?" He asked in Spanish.

Salem chuckled and smiled at the older gentleman.

Kaiba glared at Salem and nudged her as Carlos turned to sit at his desk,

"What did he say?" He whispered.

Salem shrugged and smiled to herself, ignoring Kaiba's death glare.

"Let's get started, Mr. Kaiba. Expanding your phones to Telmex seems random compared to the large network you have in Japan." Mr. Slim opened a wooden box and took out an expensive cigar. He clipped the end and smelled the phallic item.

Kaiba furrowed his brow as Salem translated,

"I assure you, Mr. Slim, This is about more than just phones-"

Carlos held up a firm hand and looked seriously at Salem,

"Does this man think I was born yesterday? He wants to use my company as a vehicle for launching his own phone line, yes? My guess is he's using you too. You should leave him as soon as you get out of Mexico. We're done here." He said, lighting his cigar and taking a long drag.

Salem cleared her throat and gazed at Kaiba nervously,

"He'll be in touch...He's very busy and wants us to enjoy the week's festivities." She lied, nodding at Carlos and standing up.

Kaiba raised an eyebrow and reached his hand out to the older man,

"Thank you for seeing us today." He said in English.

Carlos waved his hand towards the door and turned his chair around,

"Take him to the festival. Maybe he'll learn something about respect." Was the last thing he said before Salem and Kaiba were escorted out of the office.

Kaiba breathed out through his nose and stormed into the car, glaring at Salem when she sat across from him,

"What did you do?" He asked harshly.

"Me? I translated." She said simply, buckling her seatbelt.

"Don't fucking lie to me, Salem." Kaiba growled, snapping at the driver to start the car.

He was ready to go back to Japan.

This whole trip was a waste of time.

He tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for Salem to answer. He raised an eyebrow when her gaze stayed out of the window,

"Answer me, Salem." He demanded.

"I'm not a child so don't speak to me like one. You're full of shit and everyone knows it. Carlos could smell it on you as soon as we walked through the door." She spat, keeping her eyes averted.

Kaiba unbuckled his seatbelt and moved to sit next to her, grabbing her chin in his hand and forcefully turning her head so that they were eye to eye,

"Say that again, Salem." He growled.

Salem looked into his eyes and chuckled,

"You don't scare me, Seto. You wouldn't dream of hurting me. At least not physically." She said jerking her head out of Kaiba's grip, the sudden movement causing her purse to topple on to the floor.

The contents of her bag spilled across Kaiba's feet, including her personal picture of Atem.

Kaiba's eyes widened when he saw the photo. He scooped it up off of the floor of the car, not bothering to gather Salem's belongings,

"Why do you have this?" He asked slowly.

Salem stared at her lap and bit her lip,

"I think about how close I was… All the time.. Sometimes I think that if I hadn't failed you'd treat me better….But.." Her voice trailed off, cracking lightly as tears began streaming down her cheeks.

Kaiba sighed sadly and pulled Salem onto his lap, resting her head against his chest. He had ignored her the entire flight and been awful to her all day,

"I'm sorry. I've been so scared to lose you that I pushed you away… I do love you, Salem. But, I can't-" His voice caught in his throat at the thought of Salem leaving him just like Atem did.

Salem buried her head in Kaiba's neck and breathed in his scent,

"Tanin, I know it's hard to deal with death. But, I hope that if I move on...You do too. I'm sure that what's Atem actually wants for you as well…" She said softly, relaxing in Kaiba's arms.

Kaiba kissed the top of Salem's head and squeezed her lightly. It had been a long time since he had held her like this.

Too long.

The couple groaned as the finally reached their suite, popping their shoes off and yawning.

Salem rubbed her tear stained face,

"I'm going to take a bath. Do you want to join me?" She asked, pulling off her blazer.

Kaiba tucked a strand of hair behind Salem's ear and kissed her forehead,

"You go ahead...Take your time. I have to send some emails." He lied.

Salem nodded slowly and went into the luxury bathroom, shutting the door behind her.

Kaiba glanced at his watch, guilt washing over him. He knew there was still plenty of time for them to go to the festival during their stay but he was exhausted.

Their day may not have been long but it was definitely emotionally taxing.

He sighed.

He had messed up.

All she wanted to do was go to the festival and he had ignored, yelled, and insulted her.

"_She just wanted to spend time with me…" _He thought, taking the picture of Atem out of his jacket pocket.

He had to do something for her. He had ruined what was supposed to be a fun exploration of another culture and made his girlfriend feel alone.

He walked up to the hotel phone on the nightstand and stared at the directory.

He could fix this.

He would fix this.

Salem sighed happily as she rubbed rose oil all over her body. She breathed in deeply and wrapped herself in her favorite silk robe.

She slipped her smooth feet into a pair of fuzzy slippers and exited the bathroom, gasping when she saw Kaiba sitting in the middle of the large room surrounded by marigolds. She looked around the room and saw that her powerful boyfriend had spread marigold petals throughout the suite.

There was a serving tray in front of Kaiba that housed a large bottle of Moet champagne and two glasses.

Her attention switched to the corner of the room where there was a small ofrenda built and the lone picture of Atem stood, leaned up against an unlit candle. Surrounding Atem's picture were several lit candles and loaves of pan de muertos.

Salem could barely make her legs move as she sat across from Kaiba on the floor. She blinked when Kaiba wiped a tear from her cheek.

She didn't realize that she was crying.

"I thought that since I ruined our trip that I would bring the festival to you." Kaiba said, cupping her cheek gently.

He kissed her tears away and nuzzled his nose against hers. He pushed the tray to the side and pulled her onto his lap so she was straddling him. He ran his hands along her waist and down to her buttocks, letting out a throaty growl when she circled her hips against him roughly.

He snaked one of his hands up her back and grabbed the back of her neck. He turned them around and leaned back against the bed, pulling Salem's robe off of her shoulders. The hand that was on the back of her neck traveled to her scalp, gently tugging at Salem's roots.

"Mnn…" She mewled, enjoying being touched for the first time in months,

"Tanin…"

Kaiba ran his hands up Salem's toned stomach and to her exposed breasts. He pinched her nipples, still sensitive from her long hot bath. He caught her lips in his, biting her lower lip a little too hard.

She yelped and pulled away, gasping when Kaiba held her held her hips against his pelvis and grinded against her core. She let out a loud moan as Kaiba's index finger drifted to her back entrance, rubbing the velvety hole lightly as he continued to grind against her front.

"Salem…" He moaned in her ear, nibbling on her lobe.

Salem paused and gazed into his big blue orbs, breathing shakily as her boyfriend tipped her over to lay her on her back. She gasped as he pulled her robe off entirely, throwing it in the corner of the room.

Kaiba stood on his knees and unbuckled his belt, unzipping his slacks.

He smirked,

"Do you still like it with my shirt unbuttoned but not off?" He asked, unbuttoning his dress shirt slowly.

Waves of white hot arousal shot through Kaiba's core and settled in the pit of his stomach as he gazed at Salem below him.

The slow rise and fall of her chest caused her gold locket to fall against the carpeted bedroom floor. Her back was arched and her legs were shaking in anticipation of what was to come.

She nodded slowly, licking her lips and swallowing thickly.

Kaiba used the pads of his fingertips to caress her thigh, smirking when she shivered and gasped,

"It's a crime that I haven't touched you in so long…. I'm sorry, Goddess…" He said genuinely, taking his throbbing member out of his boxers, using the precum that was collecting at his tip to lube himself up.

"Tanin… You're my world…" She breathed, reaching her arms up and wrapping them around Kaiba's neck.

Kaiba rested his forehead against Salem's as he slowly, carefully pushed himself inside of her, gazing into her large honey eyes as she let out a wanton moan.

He placed his weight on his elbows on either side of Salem's head and moved himself in and out of her at a glacial pace.

She was so warm.

So soft.

Her entrance accepted him greedily, her walls contracting and tightening around his member each time he let out a breathy moan.

"Ugh...Fuck, babe…" Kaiba moaned uncharacteristically, grasping her hip and increasing his speed.

He spread his legs more, digging his knees into the carpet for more leverage.

Salem tangled her fingers in Kaiba's soft chestnut hair, not able to form words due to the intense pleasure flowing through her body. She gasped when Kaiba bit on the shell of her ear, licking and sucking on the sensitive area.

Kaiba groaned, loving how much Salem would tighten around him whenever he toyed with her weak spots. He grunted when he felt Salem's walls spasm and clench, spiraling him into his own climax.

He kissed her full lips, muffling the sound of both of their moans of ecstasy.

His seed spilled into her, overflowing as Salem's insides squeezed his member tightly, pushing out the sticky white liquid.

Kaiba stilled, breathing heavily.

The couple didn't move for what seemed like hours as they relished being in each others arms.

"Seto…" Salem hummed.

Kaiba sat up, staying inside of his beautiful partner, looking into her eyes,

"Yes, lovely?"

Salem shifted her gaze to the ofrenda in the corner of the room.

Kaiba followed Salem's eyes to the corner and gasped, immediately taking off his shirt and covering Salem with it. He carefully pulled out of her and stuffed himself in his pants and cleared his throat, helping Salem sit up and properly button the shirt.

"_There's no need to be shy. You're both so beautiful.." _Atem's ghostly royal form was standing in the corner, surrounded by the marigolds. They glowed around him.

Kaiba grasped Salem's hand nervously. The couple looked at each other and then back at Atem's spirit.

Kaiba spoke first,

"H-how?"

Atem's shoulder's bounced as the king chuckled,

"_All of a sudden I was in this room and I could see you both. It's nice to meet you, Princess." _

Kaiba furrowed his brow at Salem,

"Princess?"

Salem cleared her throat,

"It's a long, long story. I don't use that title anymore, Pharaoh Atem. I'm a different person now." She said, nudging Kaiba with her hip playfully.

Atem's ghostly form floated toward the couple, kneeling in front of them and smiling gently. He gazed at Salem's face and sighed,

"My, you are lovely…" Atem started, turning his attention to Kaiba,

"You need to be better Kaiba… This woman you have here...She's special. You need to take care of each other…" He said hovering his hands over Salem and Kaiba's clasped ones.

Kaiba gazed at his ghostly rival and squeezed Salem's hand,

"How long will you be visible? Is there a way we can make you stay?" He asked the spirit in front of him, desperate for his rival's return.

Atem shook his head and sighed,

"Kaiba, I wouldn't have been able to move on to the other side if it weren't for you and the others and I truly miss all of you every single day…" he trailed off, studying Salem's beautiful face carefully.

"But, you need to consider your own future, Kaiba. I'm at rest and I'm happy. The others have thrived and moved on, it's time for you to do the same.." He finished, gesturing to Salem.

Kaiba felt his heart break and flutter at the same time. He was upset that Atem didn't want to come back but was ecstatic that the young king approved of his new partner.

"Atem...I-" Kaiba choked back a small sob and cleared his throat,

"You never said how long you were staying…"

Atem stood up, leading Salem and Kaiba to stand up as well,

"I don't intend to stay long. Any longer than this and I won't want to leave."

"We can make it work, Atem. I can try again!" Salem said, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.

Atem shook his head and hovered his hand over her cheek to cup her face,

"I was watching when you both tried it the first time. I don't want to put anyone in that much danger. Not ever again. It was difficult to see Kaiba struggle with the guilt while you were hospitalized... You two love each other… You don't need me, Kaiba. Not anymore." He put his hand back down at his side and smiled lovingly at the couple in front of him.

Kaiba's eyes widened when the edges of Atem's form began to fade slowly,

"Wait. I'm can't-I'm not strong enough." He croaked, his voice uncharacteristically vulnerable.

Atem tilted his head,

"For what, Kaiba?" His form was becoming more and more translucent.

Kaiba took a deep breath and blinked heavily,

"I'm not strong enough to be without you…"

Salem lowered her head and clasped both of her small hands around Kaiba's and then gazed at Atem sadly. She also didn't know how to "be" or feel about Atem's absence. She had worked so hard but…maybe it was better this way.

Atem's fading shoulders bounced as he chuckled,

"Oh, Kaiba. You've never been without me. None of you have." His voice became softer and harder to hear as he faded into nothingness.

"_Take care of each other…"_ Were the last words the couple heard before the room's energy returned to its stale state.

Kaiba snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Salem fall to her knees. He knelt beside her and cupped her cheek.

She was crying. A mix of joy, confusion, and guilt on her face,

"Salem? What's wrong?" He asked, brushing her tears away with his thumbs.

She let out a mix of a sob and a laugh,

"How? How did that just happen?" He was hysterical, her eyes searching the carpet for a scientific explanation.

Kaiba huffed air out through his nose and chuckled,

"Feliz Dia' De Los Muertos, Goddess."

* * *

Happy Belated birthday to Usagi Moonie and Happy Early Dia De Los Muertos!

This request took me longer to write than I would care to admit mainly due to all of the things in my life going to shit at the SAME TIME! Instead of using writing as an escape like I normally do, I just completely shut off…

ANYWAY, I hope you enjoyed this story!

Thank you for reading!


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